LTE-A, VoLTE likely to hit Taiwan in 2016
Taiwan’s main mobile telephony operators launched LTE services in May 2014, and by the end of the first quarter of 2015, nearly 90% of the territory had LTE coverage, according to tech consultancy firm IDC Taiwan senior market analyst Andy Ye.
Ye told RCR Wireless News that LTE coverage will reach 99% of Taiwan’s territory by the end of 2015. Ye also said that local mobile carriers Chunghwa Telecom, Taiwan Mobile and Far EasTone Telecommunications are likely to launch LTE-Advanced and voice over LTE solutions in 2016.
According to the analyst, Taiwan’s 4G market currently reaches 5 million subscribers and this figure is forecast to expand to 10 million by the end of the year. Taiwan’s largest operator, Chunghwa Telecom, targets 4 million 4G customers by the end of the year, which will represent nearly 40% of the local LTE market, according to the company’s president Mu Piao Shih.
“We maintained our leadership position in the 4G market and have accumulated over 2 million subscribers by the end of the first quarter,” the executive said during a recent conference call with investors.
Far EasTone ended Q1 with 1.5 million mobile telephony subscribers and is targeting 3 million by the end of the year, while Taiwan Mobile is also expecting to reach nearly 3 million LTE subscribers by year-end, according to previous reports.
Chunghwa Telecom’s CFO Bo Yung Chen also said that the company will continue to aggressively deploy its 4G network across Taiwan, with a planned capital expenditure of $998 million for 2015. Chunghwa Telecom is currently offering LTE services through spectrum in the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands, while rival operators Taiwan Mobile and Far EasTone are offering LTE utilizing the 700 MHz spectrum band.
Taiwan’s National Communications Commission is planning to award spectrum in the 2.6 GHz band during 2015. This new spectrum will enable local carriers to launch TD-LTE and FDD-LTE in 2016.
